onnemara

 

Connemara, on the west of Ireland, is an area of natural beauty and one of the
most scenic areas of Ireland. Connemara's coast has a wealth of lovely beaches, small islands and harbors. Clifden is the main town in Connemara. Connemara Marble, the famous green stone, was used by early inhabitants as a trade treasure and even today it continues to be of great value. 
To get to Connemara we took Railway Tours DH04: Galway Bay and Connemara
leaving from Heuston Station, Dublin.

 

The Quiet Man Bridge is where the opening scene in the movie 'The Quiet Man' starring John Wayne and Maureen O'Hara was filmed.
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Next stop on the tour was Roundstone Harbour and a delicious lunch at O'Dowd's Seafood Bar & Restaurant. Roundstone is a quaint picturesque fishing village that is one of the oldest on the West coast. That's Brendan, our tour guide, in the yellow Railtours jacket below.

 

 

 

 
A short photo stop at Coral Beach, Atlantic Ocean.

 

 
Onto the highlight of the tour...Kylemore Abbey, monastic home of the Irish Benedictine Nuns. The history of the abbey is one of tragedy and sadness which changed when the nuns purchasing the land in 1920. Today the abbey, gardens and church are as breathtaking as they are peaceful and include an on-site restaurant and gift shop where the nuns sell some of their handcrafted wares.

Kylemore Abbey

 

 Kylemore Church         Kylemore Lake

Rhodedendrons

          Statue of Christ  
     with outstretched arms
        high on the hill

                                                                                           

                                                                                                         

 

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